Grille assembly for air-conditioning apparatus



y 4 A. H. EBERHART 2,469,955

GRILLE ASSEMBLY FOR AIR CONDITIONING APPARATUS Filed Oct. 25, 1944 INVENTOR RRTHUR. H-EBsRHaR-r.

BY c- ATTORNEY Patented May 10, 1949 GRILLE ASSEMBLY FOR AIR-CONDITIONING APPARATUS Arthur H. Eberhart, Springfield, Mesa, assignor' to Westinghouse Electric Corporation, East Pittsburgh, Pa., a corporation of Pennsylvania Application October 25, 1944, Serial No. 560,266

My invention relates to, air conditioning apparatus of the self-contained or unit type commonly used for conditioning air in individual rooms or other relatively small enclosures.

One object of my invention is to produce an improved air conditioning unit of this type.

An air conditioning unit of the type set forth is provided with a grille through which conditioned air is discharged into the room.

It is, therefore, a further object of my invention to produce an improved grille assembly for an air conditioning unit of the type set forth.

3 Claims. (Cl. 98-40) A still further object is to produce a grille assembly which will present a neat appearance and which will be inexpensive to produce and install.

A still further object is to produce a grille assembly by means of which vibration of the grille and transmission of operational noises are reduced.

These and other objects are effected by my invention as will be apparent from the following description and claims taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, forming a part of this application, in which:

Fig. 1 is a view, partly in section and partly in elevation, of a window-mounted air conditioning unit embodying my invention;

Fig. 2 is an enlarged view of the upper righthand portion of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 3 is a fragmentary top plan view of the right-hand portion of Fig. 1.

2 portion l6. The marginal portions 46 of the top and side walls of the outer portion l6 are preferably slightly depressed as shown in Fig. 1 so that the exterior of the entire casing presents a flush or continuous surface. The inner portion i4 is provided with an air inlet 42, the lower or room end of which is controlled by a damper 44, and a discharge duct 46, provided with a grille 48. through which air conditioning by the evaporator is discharged into the room. The inlet 42 is preferably formed by spacing the front wall 36 of the removable cover from the front wall 60 of the unit.

The evaporator is connected in refrigerant flow relation to the compressor i8 and condenser in any well-known manner which need not be shown or described. The upper end of the inlet 42 is connected, by passages provided on either side of the duct 46, with a passage 52. The pasfan 22 can be used to draw room air through the Referring to the drawings, there is shown an air conditioning unit mounted on a window sill iii to which it is secured by any desirable means ii. The unit includes an inner portion l4 adapted to project into the room and an outer portion l6 adapted to project into the outside atmosphere.

The outer portion l6 of the unit houses the usual compressor I8, condenser 26, blower 22 and motor 24 for actuating the blower. The portion I 6 is also provided with a screened inlet 28 through which outside air may be drawn by the blower 22 for cooling the condenser. The air flowing over the condenser is discharged to the atmosphere through an outlet (not shown).

The inner portion [4 of the unit houses an evaporator 28 and a blower 36 which is driven by the motor 24. The inner portion H of the unit is provided with a removable cover formed of a inlet 42, or outside air through the inlet 26, for cooling the condenser. The structure thus far described forms no part of the present invention.

In order to carry out the objects of this in-' vention, the upper end of the duct 46 is provided with an outwardly turned flange 56. The flange 56 provides a support on which is positioned a cushioning member 56 which is of very resilient an opening66 which is preferably of the same shapeas the grille 48 but which is also preferably smaller than the grille. The opening 66 is defined by a pendant flange 66 adapted to abut against the grille 48.

. Assembly The cushioning member 58 is first placed upon 66 the flange" and the U-shaped gaskets 60 are then placed in position and secured by the screws 62. The grille 48 is now dropped into position with the periphery of the grille resting upon the inner marginal portions of the cushion .58 and the flange 58. The removable cover is then slipped over the room end .of. the unit with the top wall 82 thereof resting upon the upper edges of the U-shaped gaskets 60.

Since the'cushion 58 is of highly compressible material, and since the U-shaped gaskets 86 are.

88 's little too deep or not quite deep enough,

the highly resilient and compressible cushion 58 will compensate for such excess or deficiency as may exist, thus causing the grille 48 to be tightly clamped between the flange 68 of the casing cover and the supporting flange 58.. This prevents rattling oi the grille when the unit is in operation. Likewise, due -to the resiliency of the side walls of the gaskets 80, it is unnecessary accurately to dimensionthe length and width of the grille 48. Thus, if the grille is slightly in excess of specified length and width, it can be jammed or wedged against the resilient walls of the gaskets 60. If, on the other hand, the grille is somewhat smaller than the specified size, it can rest upon the marginal portion of the cushion 58 and flange 56, in spaced relation to the gaskets 60, and is prevented from movement or rattling by the weight of the casing cover. Therefore, the grille 48, the flange 56, the cushion 58 and the gaskets 60 will produce satisfactory results without being accurately made or aligned.

It will be seen that by the structure and ar-- rangement described, the necessity of forming the grille as an integral part of the top wall 32 of the removable cover, together with its attendant difficulties and expense, is entirely eliminated. Also, the necessity of forming a snug seat for the grille by properly cutting and bending the flange 68 of the top wall 32 surrounding the opening 56 is also eliminated. It will also be noted that, except for its top surface, the grille is concealed so that it is unnecessary to impart to the grille a finished appearance. The opening 66 and pendant flange 88 in the-top wall 32 of the front cover may be formed by a single punching and bending operation, thus again reducing the cost.

While I have shown my invention in but one form, itwill be obvious to those skilled in the art that it is not so limited, but is susceptible of various changes and modifications without departing from the spirit thereof.

What I claim is:

1. In an air conditioning unit, a heat exchanger, a duct leading from said heat exchanger, a support adjacent the free end of said duct, a compressible cushion member carried by said support, a grille carried by said cushion member inregistration with said end of said duct, a compressible U-shaped resilient member also carried by said cushion member adjacent the periphery of said grille, a cover abutting the limbs 4 of the U-shaped member and at least partially enclosing said grille, said. heat exchanger, and said duct, therebeing an opening in said cover registering withsaid grille and said end of said duct, and said cover having a pendant flange surrounding said opening and abutting against ,said grille, said parts being constructed and arranged ior flow 01 air successively through said heat exchangensaid duct, said grille and said opening in the cover. a

2. An air conditioning unit comprising an internal structure including a heat exchanger, a housing structure enclosing said heat exchanger and having an outlet at the top for discharge of air. from said heat exchanger, said housing structure including a horizontal supporting surface surrounding said outlet, a grille disposed across said outlet and resting on said supporting surface, and a compressible cushion member disposed on said supporting surface outwardly of said grille; and an outer casing enclosing said internal structure, said casing including a cover member having a top wall and a vertical wall, said top wall having an opening registering with said outlet and having a flange around the edge of said opening projecting downwardly and abutting said grille, whereby'said grille is held in place by said cover member, said compressible cushion member being compressed between said supporting surface and said top wall.

3.. In an air conditioning unit, a heat exchanger, a duct leading upwardly from said heat exchanger, a support adjacent the upper end of said duct, said support comprising a flange extending horizontally outwardly from the upper edges of the walls of said duct, a compressible cushion member carried by said support, a grille carried by said cushion member in registration with the upper end of said duct, a cover at least partially enclosing said grille, said heat exchanger and said duct, said cover including a top wall having an opening therein registering with said grille and the upper end of said duct and also having a flange surrounding said opening and abutting against said grille, and compressible resilient material interposed between said support and said cover to minimize leakage of air therebetween, said parts providing flow of air successively through said heat exchanger, said duct, said grille and said opening in said top wall.

. ARTHUR H. EBERHART.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Date 

